Sex Selection of Children

Sex Selection of Children explores the strategies used to control the sex of children, the conditions under which a couple would employ a given technique, and the technology to achieve their desired family composition. It also considers the social consequences of sex-selection techniques, the legal factors that might impinge on the use of such a technology, and the ethical considerations associated with its use.
Organized into 10 chapters, this book begins with an overview of some of the more humorous past approaches to sex selection. It then discusses the effects of sex selection on fertility, sex selection by means of amniocentesis and selective abortion, and the theorized link between the timing of fertilization and the sex ratio of offspring. A chapter considers a decision-making model that describes the use of sex-selection techniques by couples who wish to have a specific number of children over their entire childbearing period, while another chapter analyzes the economics of sex preference and selection. The remaining chapters address the parental preferences about the sexes of their offspring in different societies, the legal aspects of prenatal sex selection, a moral policy for sex choice, and the ethics and public policy on sex choice.
This book is a valuable resource for specialists involved in fields ranging from sociology and economics to biology, public health, law, and ethics.

Contenu

Contributors
Foreword
Preface
1 Sex Selection of Children: An Overview
Historical Overview
Current Research and an Overview of the Chapters
References
2 Measuring Sex Preferences and Their Effects on Fertility
Introduction
Potential Effects of Sex Selection
Examples of the Potential Effects of Sex Selection
A Decision-Making Model for Sex Preferences Considering Measures of Sex Preferences
Unresolved Issues
References
3 Sex Selection through Amniocentesis and Selective Abortion
Introduction
Assumptions
Birth Trial Probabilities
Family Composition with No Sex Selection
Sex Selection for Sequential Family Goals
Sex Selection for Compositional Family Goals
Discussion
Summary
Appendix
References
4 Timing of Fertilization and the Sex Ratio of Offspring
Introduction
Earlier Direct Data
More Recent Direct Data
Other Mammalian Data
Sex Ratio and Spontaneous Abortion
Indirect Data
Discussion
Summary
Appendix
References
5 Decision Making and Sex Selection with Biased Technologies
Introduction
The Decision-Making Model
Discussion
References
6 The Economics of Sex Preference and Sex Selection
Introduction
Review of the Economic Approach
A Model of Sequential Fertility
Summary, Conclusions, and Suggestions for Further Research
References
7 Parental Sex Preferences and Sex Selection
Introduction
Patterns of Parental Sex Preferences
Barriers to the Use of Sex Selection
Impact of Sex Selection on Society and the Family
References
8 Legal Aspects of Prenatal Sex Selection
Introduction
Conceptual Foundation for the Legal Analysis of Sex Selection
Legal Issues
Analysis of Current Law
Legal Trends
References
9 Toward a Moral Policy for Sex Choice
Background
Moral Dimensions of Sex Choice
Policy for Sex Choice
A Final Word
References
10 Ethics and Public Policy: Should Sex Choice Be Discouraged?
Introduction
Moral Policy in Sexuality and Reproduction
Consequences of Freedom with Fairness in Sex Choice
Ethics, Public Policy, and the Future of Sex Choice
References
Index